


The Antics of Magic

by Miracle_Novelist



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Magical Realism, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Game, Babies Born With Powers, Coming of Age, Coming of Age (sort of), Growing Up, Human Eridan Ampora, Human Sollux Captor - Freeform, M/M, Magical Accidents, Parents are Like WTF
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-06
Updated: 2019-03-08
Packaged: 2019-11-12 19:57:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,327
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18017423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Miracle_Novelist/pseuds/Miracle_Novelist
Summary: At some point, Nicole and Winfred Ampora should’ve recognized that the odd happenings in their house only occurred when the baby was having a fit. When lightning struck the house and turned out all the lights, he was crying. When his window came crashing in from the harsh winter wind, he was crying. Yes, these seem to be normal things a small infant would cry at. Loud and scary noises tend to do that. However, flower pots don’t just randomly burst, televisions don’t just knock themselves over, and babies certainly, without a doubt, do not glow.The girl, barely a woman, sniffled as she sat back and looked at the car seat next to her. As if it wasn’t bad enough, the infant was staring up at her, finally quiet. The snot that ran down his mouth was drying there. His head was scratched in a few different places from the kitten, and Lyn was sure if she took off his diaper, he would still have a rash. On that clear June evening, a stained and sticky car seat was placed on the doorstep of St. Martha’s Orphanage, no note, no name, just a baby and a dirty stuffed bee.Updated: Irregularly





	1. Strong Willed

**Author's Note:**

> I literally just wrote this so don't be surprised if there are some errors. I'm also not going to pretend to be super good at posting regularly so I hope you enjoy the first two chapters that I have written, but I'm not too sure when I'll write the rest. (Maybe this'll be like self-manipulation. If I tell myself that I DON'T have to write this, then maybe I will.)

At some point, Nicole and Winfred Ampora should’ve recognized that the odd happenings in their house only occurred when the baby was having a fit. When lightning struck the house and turned out all the lights, he was crying. When his window came crashing in from the harsh winter wind, he was crying. Yes, these seem to be normal things a small infant would cry at. Loud and scary noises tend to do that. However, flower pots don’t just randomly burst, televisions don’t just knock themselves over, and babies certainly, without a doubt, do  _ not _ glow.

 

Nicole stood in the doorway to the nursery in shock. The room usually had two light sources at night: an angel-shaped wall nightlight and the tiny fish tank next to the crib. Nicole, herself, picked out the colorful betta when she did the math. Her son would be an Aquarius like her. Even if Fred didn’t care much for the zodiacs, she thought it neat. But that night, as she climbed the narrow staircase to check on the baby, she saw a bright light emitting from Danny’s room. At first, she pegged it as headlights through the window, but then she turned the corner and froze.

The crib was shining like a star. Nicole momentarily wondered if she was asleep on the couch. Maybe it was all a nightmare?

 

Things got shaky after that. 

 

One day, the couple was in the kitchen. Nicole was sitting at the bar watching her husband pull a pizza out of the oven. Her doe-like eyes traveled to the rocker, where their five-month-old laid shaking the rattling toy with difficulty. He was talking in elongated vowels and beginning to lift his head by himself.

“Fred?”

He hummed while rolling the pizza cutter aggressively over the food.

“I think we should tell someone.”

He turned quickly, his high browbone prominent from him raising his brows, “What?” 

She pointedly looked at Danny. When he followed her gaze, his face fell.

“We’ve talked about that,” he said blankly, turning back towards the counter.

“I know.”

“They’ll call us crazy.”

“Not if we  _ show _ them,” she whined.

“We can’t.”

“I don’t know what to do Fred. We can’t hide it forever. Someday someone’s going to see it. They’ll...they’re gonna see him shining when he’s coloring or just walking down the street.”

“Hopefully he’ll learn to control it.”

“We don’t even know that  _ it _ is!”

“Look,” he set the tool back down and turned fully around. He leaned back against the counter with his arms crossed, “I know it’s...odd. But there’s only so much we can do. For all we know, they’ll bring in the FBI or something. Bring him to area 51. We  _ can’t _ tell anyone. It’s crazy Nikki.”

She sighed, holding her head in her palms. Danny was looking up at them in wonder, just watching. Sometimes Nicole thought he understood certain things. She didn’t like it.

“I don’t know how much more I can take Fred. This is…”

“Hard?”

“Yeah,” she laughed.

“Completely out of our leagues?”

Nicole nodded, looking at her husband.

“Well,” he turned and grabbed a piece of pizza and put it on one of the two plates sitting on the counter. He brought it over to the bar and set it in front of his wife. “For right now, let’s just take it slow. And eat pizza.”

The dark-haired woman smiled up at him and lifted the slice.

“Ow! Hot!”


	2. The Drop Off

The night was warm, unlike most unfortunate nights. Considering the circumstances, there should’ve been rain and lightning cutting through the air. Alas, the night was like a warm bath. It smelled of sweet flowers and the crickets sang their annoying songs from within the bushes.

A noisy and sputtering red truck pulled up to a local orphanage. The vehicle was rusted and the windshield was cracked to the point that it was a miracle that Lyn Thompson could even see out of it. She wasn’t crying. Tom cried enough for both of them. For the past week, the baby cried nonstop and even when he would finally fall asleep, he was restless and soon woke up again. Lyn was still bleeding from the birth, which fell short when the second baby didn’t come out. Her blond hair was oily and pulled back in a half-assed ponytail. 

Even now, the bastard wouldn’t shut up.

Lyn rested her head against her arms on the steering wheel for a moment. Was she really willing to do this? What kind of mother would she be if she did this? In her mind, the fact that she was considering this was enough to tell her what she needed to know: she wasn’t a mother.

She couldn’t do this. Money was tight and jobs were far and few in between. She frequently got migraines for no apparent reason and was lucky to get at least 5 hours of continuous sleep. Night after night, she fell asleep at two in the morning after crying her eyes out. She couldn’t take on this responsibility. 

The girl, barely a woman, sniffled as she sat back and looked at the car seat next to her. As if it wasn’t bad enough, the infant was staring up at her, finally quiet. The snot that ran down his mouth was drying there. His head was scratched in a few different places from the kitten, and Lyn was sure if she took off his diaper, he would still have a rash. On that clear June evening, a stained and sticky car seat was placed on the doorstep of St. Martha’s Orphanage, no note, no name, just a baby and a dirty stuffed bee.

 

There was always someone on guard in the building, whether it was a security guard or just one of the nuns. On that particular night, one of the oldest nuns was sitting in the hallway keeping watch. If any of those rascals came sneaking to the kitchen for extra rations, she would catch them. She was not prepared for the doorbell to chime loudly throughout the hall.

Hilda stood and walked towards the church part of the building. Footsteps could be heard behind her.

“St. Hilda?”

“Go back to bed,” she ordered hushed-like.

“Was that the bell?”

More children emerged from their dorms, all wondering what the loud echoing sound was. Their ages ranged from four to twelve.

“I’m going to go check it out. All of you stay here.”

“No one ever rings the bell.”

“Stay here,” and she turned and left.

 

She opened the front door slowly, prepared to see some crying woman or a drunken man thinking the service was open at three in the morning. What she found, she almost huffed at. Someone leaving a baby on the doorstep? How unoriginal.

The woman looked for a note, maybe a social security card, but got nothing. The infant was tiny and had almost crossed eyes. It couldn’t have been older than two weeks.

“Well, it seems you’re a real John Doe,” she cooed as she picked up the heavy seat.

The children swarmed around the car seat when Hilda entered the hall.

“A baby?”

“Did someone just leave it there?”

“What’s its name?”

Hilda shooed away the kids and set the thing on the bench, looking down at the infant inside.

“It looks small,” one girl said, rising to her tip-toes to get a good look.

“He was born not long ago,” the nun wiped the snot from its face with the pocket hanky she kept with her at all times. Usually, it was used during church hours when people would come to pray and talk about a loved one.

“It’s May,” a seven-year-old said.

“No, it’s June,” a ten-year-old corrected.

“So he’s a Gemini,” a girl said from farther back.

The ten-year-old, known as Lemmy, adjusted his glasses while looking at the boy in the car seat. “The constellation is made of two different sets. One’s called Pollux and the other is Castor. Let’s name him Castor.”

A young girl grimaced, “No, let’s call him...Pol...Pastor.”

“No, Pastor? That’s not a name.”

“Children,” Hilda tried to get them to listen, but they kept at it.

“What about Callox?”

“No, that’s stupid.”

“Cas...ol..stor...lux...Sol...tor...Sol...lux. Sollux. Yeah, Sollux.”

“That sounds weird.”

“Children, you’re not naming the baby.”

“Sollux Pollux.”

“No, the last name has to change.”

“Sollux...Casollux.”

“Ew no.”

“Guys, what about Sollux Captor? Just switch the S and P.”

“Sollux Captor.”

“Sollux Captor.”

“Children! No more name games. I need to call someone about this.”

“Who are you going to call?” Lemmy asked.

Hilda sighed while looking down at the infant, “I don’t know.”


	3. Then There Was Three

Eridan stepped up onto the sidewalk of the elementary school. It seemed like it should’ve been the easiest thing in the world, but for the five-year-old, it made his heart pound against his rib cage. It was one of the only times he had been out of the house.

The sky was cloudy and looked as if they would open up and soak all of them to the bone.

“Danny, are you coming?” Nicole called from further ahead. She held her hand out for him to take. He reached for it although he didn’t want to to go inside.

She lead him through two big doors and into a place with a lot of other children. Some of them were big and some of them were his size. He stuck close to his mother and tried to hold his breath.

Nicole looked down at her son. His chubby cheeks were smooth and came to a square point like his father’s. She knew that some day he’d lose the baby fat and be left with Fred’s prominent jaw. The way Danny’s dark eyebrows scrunched together made Nicole think of her husband’s way of concentrating, but unlike Fred, Danny had her soft, dark eyes. It was a magical thing to have a creation from both of them. However, she had no idea where he got the magic. She pulled her child to a bench away from other kids.

He looked at her like he was expecting a job or chore; like she was supposed to tell him what to do.

“Are you holding your breath like we practiced?”

He nodded curtly.

“Just keep doing that, but don’t forget to breathe. Okay?”

He nodded once more and let out a puff of air before inhaling again. The Amporas found that this helped their son concentrate on keeping the magic at bay. If he got too caught up in emotions or daydreaming, then things got hairy.

“How are you feeling?”

“Dunno,” he crossed his arms, “I don’t wanna go.”

“I know, but you have to. It’s only for a little bit, and then I’ll be back to pick you up.”

He frowned.

“Do you trust me?”

Eridan nodded but opened his mouth to say something. He stopped short though, because there was a kid looking at him. Eridan quickly averted his gaze.

“What is it honey.”

“I’ll...glow,” he whispered.

“Just keep breathing and you’ll be fine. If it gets too much for you, cover your ears and listen to your heart.”

Eridan nodded. His mother took both of his hands and straightened his shirt out. A part of his striped scarf had fallen down the wrong way and so she fixed that as well.

“Everything’s going to be fine, just breathe. Got it?”

He looked up into his mom’s dark eyes, “Don’t wanna go.”

“I know. But saying it over and over isn’t going to change anything,” she sighed and looked around. “Maybe you’ll make some friends. Maybe it’ll be fun.”

“Maybe.”

“So why not give it a shot? You’ll never know if you don’t try.”

He nodded and looked around with a new light in his eyes. Thankfully, it wasn’t the illuminating kind.

 

The classroom was large but not tall. Eridan didn’t even get through the door before he was hiding behind his mother’s legs. How was he supposed to keep his magic a secret? How was he supposed to make friends?

“Hi! I’m Mrs. Val. Nice to meet you,” a tall lady shook his mother’s hand. Eridan surveyed the room and children from behind her thighs. They were all talking and sitting in desks. Most of them were smiling and looked friendly with each other. He didn’t know any of them.

“This must be…?”

“Eridan, he’s a bit shy.”

“I can see. You don’t have to worry Eridan, you’ve already made one friend today.”

He peeked at her with scrunched brows, “Who?”

“Me. I already like you. We’re going to have so much fun today. Can I shake your hand?”

He stuck out his hand like his mom did, and she gently shook it.

“Can I show you to your seat?”

Eridan looked up at his mom and she nodded, “Go on.”

“Don’t leave.”

“I have to Danny. Classrooms aren’t for parents,” she adjusted her long black hair.

“I can’t,” he pleaded. His grip on her hand tightened.

“You can, just breathe and you’ll be alright, okay? You won’t know unless you try, remember?”

He looked at Mrs. Val and then back, “Okay.”

“I’ll be back soon to pick you up. Don’t worry.”

The boy nodded but his lips still pointed down. Mrs. Val motioned for him to follow. He watched until his mother was out of sight before actually moving.

 

She sat him down at a four-person table. There were already two other girls sitting there. One girl had darker skin that looked like a brownie or cocoa powder. He had never seen anyone of color before. Her black, straight hair was chopped at her chin and she wore a red shirt that brought out her chocolate eyes. The other girl had brown hair, blue eyes, and scrawny shoulders. She wore an array of pastel and bright colors.

“Hi! I’m Feferi! What’s your name?”

“Eridan,” he tried, but his voice was too quiet compared to her boisterous one.

“Nice to meet you Eridan.”

He nodded and eyed the brownie girl. He wondered if she spent too much time outside or something. Maybe she was struck by lightning and she was burnt.

“This is Aradia,” Feferi motioned.

The girl lifted an eyebrow at Eridan’s stare. He really wanted to know what happened. He wouldn’t know unless he tried...right?

“Why do you look like chocolate,” he asked with a tilt of his head.

“What?” She retracted.

He shrinked a little bit, “You’re skin...it’s...dark.”

“Yeah? You got a problem with that?”

“N-no, It’s just…” he sucked in a breath and held it for a second. “I’ve never seen it.”

Feferi looked between the two and smiled, “You’ve never seen an Indian person?”

“A Indian person?”

Aradia leaned forward on her crossed arms, “I’m dark. You’re white. It’s just how it is.”

“Okay,” he hunched down. Making friends seemed harder than he thought.

“It’s okay, I’m sure Eridan wasn’t being mean,” Feferi said. “Hey, I like your scarf!”

He looked up and then down at the item, “Thanks, it keeps me calm.”

The cheery girl cocked her head at that but didn’t push.

“I-I like your seashell necklace,” he tried being friendly.

“Oh thanks! I made it with my sister. We always go to the beach. I could make you one if you want.”

“Oh...yeah. Thanks.”

“Cool! Hey Aradia, do you want one too?”

“Sure,” she looked around the room. Eridan finally noticed that she looked just about as nervous as he did. He looked at her array of things on the table. Her backpack was black and pink with a skull on it.

“I like your backpack,” he said more confidently, “Looks scary. It’s cool.”

She smiled and nodded, “Thanks.”

The rest of the day consisted of learning about other kids in a circle, lunch, and playing outside. He stuck by Feferi and Aradia the whole time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is all the first draft and I'm aware that it's very poorly-written, but oh well. I'll make it better later. For now, enjoy the story.


	4. Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW: Abuse (Implied)

Sollux Captor sat on the front steps of St. Martha’s Orphanage. He listened to the voices of people passing by, even if they weren’t talking. He didn’t understand why he could hear people’s thoughts, but he couldn’t ask anyone either. Every time he answered a question that someone asked in their mind, they looked at him like he was weird.

So he sat back and tried to make sense of the things people were thinking.

“...maybe I’m paranoid. She’s probably…”

“...birds are pretty today, maybe I should ta…”

“...fuck, I forgot about Jen…”

“... _ we need to get inside before anyone sees _ …”

Sollux looked up, wondering why Ms. Donna’s thoughts were out there and why she sounded scared. 

 

Sure enough, just down the sidewalk, Sollux spotted a nun guiding a small child towards the entrance.

“Sollux! Can you bring him inside please?”

He stood, a little apprehensive at Donna’s request. The boy looked up from the ground and Sollux caught sight of bruising around his eye and on his arms. For a moment, Sollux thought the kid just took a big fall, but then he caught sight of a man running down the road with a few policemen coming after him. He was angry and yelling like a madman.

Sollux read his thoughts: “...that kid. I’m gonna fucking beat him. He’s mine and they don’t get to take him away from me. Those fuckers…”

Sollux looked back at the kid who was watching the man with big, dark eyes. Suddenly, the Captor realized that he couldn’t read his thoughts. Sollux couldn’t read the thoughts of the bruised boy.

“What’th your name?”

The kid wrapped his arms more tightly around himself. He ignored Sollux.

“Sollux! Take him inside,” the nun hissed.

The commotion on the street was starting to get quieter and so Sollux tentatively put his hand on the boy’s shoulder and guided him through the large double doors of the church.

Once inside, he tried again.

“What’th your name?”

The boy shrunk into himself and shook his head. He didn’t want to talk.

“I can’t hear your thoughtth.”

The boy looked up angrily and huffed, “Karkat.”

Maybe Karkat didn’t understand what he just said. Sollux couldn’t hear his thoughts: it was a big thing because Sollux heard  _ everyone’s _ thoughts. Of course, the two were too young to draw lines between everything because they didn’t  _ know _ everything.

“I can take you to the playground.”

“Stay here. Wait.”

“Okay,” Sollux sat in a pew, waiting for further instructions from Donna. Eventually, Karkat joined him, but he left more than a few feet between them.

 

“Karkat will be staying for a few days until they can find a home for him.”

Sollux looked over at Karkat to find his eyes devoid of emotion. It seemed really sad to see someone like that.

Everyone’s minds were going at it and asking so many questions, but Sollux scooted over to Karkat at the dinner table filled with other orphans.

“I can’t hear your thoughth,” Sollux tried again. Maybe saying it a second time would make him understand.

Karkat glared at him suspiciously. “What,” he demanded.

He wasn’t sure if he should tell Karkat about his magic, but there was only one way to find out what was going on.

“I can hear people’th mindth but not yourth. I have magic,” he whispered the last part.

The dark-eyed boy tilted his head, “Me too.”

“You hear people’th thoughtth?”

“No! I just have...magic,” he looked around before saying it.

Sollux smiled, “You’re like me. What’th your power?”

“I make people feel.”

“Huh?”

“People around me feel what I feel. I think,” Karkat looked down in thought. “But I wasn’t mad. He was just mad. I don’t know what I did.”

Sollux knew that he was talking about the loud man in the street.

“You’re dad?”

He nodded.

“Maybe your powerth jutht made him madder? When people are around me, they alwayth thay I’m creepy.”

“You’re not creepy,” Karkat smiled tightly while shaking his head.

“Thankth.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave a comment and tell me what you think. I know there's not much, but I find that shorter chapters are better for procrastination.
> 
> Also I'm very aware that this is all VERY poorly written. I'm just trying to get the story out. Which is better...a long chapter that I never finish or short chapters that are easy? This might be shit, but that's what editing's for.


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